Earlier in the day, Abe officially announced his decision to resign for health reasons. He has already informed the leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, of which he is the leader, and Natsuo Yamaguchi, the leader of the Komeito party, a part of the ruling coalition.
The retiring prime minister is leaving office due to ulcerative colitis, a chronic disease that already caused him to abandon the premiership in 2007.
Despite those circumstances, he once again assumed the prime minister's chair in 2012 and went on to become the longest-serving Japanese head of government.